Employability Skills- Personal Grooming and Hygiene
Welcome back as we discuss Employability Skills and the Local Industry standards. We will continue to look at ways you can support your individual NOW for competitive employment. We will pick back up looking at Work Preparedness.
Work Preparedness: Manage personal grooming and hygiene
In the world of work, clean is king! Aside from the typical thought process of hygiene, showering, dressing, and brushing teeth, sneaky Independent Living joins the party too.
Family Practice Ideas:
Encourage the use of a napkin when eating. If this isn’t where you thought we’d start, you’re right, but a common thing seen in training programs is food on the mouth or clothes after lunch or a snack break. A wonderful worker can enter work with the help of family looking shiny and ready and end it all in a 15-minute break.
Work the individual’s morning routine to having them brush their teeth in their pajamas or before they put their work shirt on and wipe their mouth when they finish. A common pitfall for individuals is toothpaste residue on the mouth when they arrive at work and drops on the shirt. Again, all the steps were completed to prepare them for work, and a small, sometimes avoidable, mishap could change the whole presentation.
Work on letting the individual know when they are running low on things like deodorant, shampoo, or toothpaste. In real life, those things don’t just appear in the hall closet. This can be as simple as having pictures of the items with magnets on the back in an envelope on the fridge and having your individual put the pictures by the grocery list. With the picture magnet method, even those who are young or struggle with writing can show what they need.
Talk about and regularly participate in various forms of bathing. Some individuals have skin that can’t handle hot showers daily, particularly in winter. Still, they can wash “pits and parts” using soap and a washcloth, so they are participating in regular hygiene but not taking a whole shower.
Find items that make bathing easier or more tolerable for those with sensory needs to assist in bathing avoidance. Check out an Amazon Idea List here. (Please note the items are options to consider, not brand recommendations.)
Make a routine of hygiene, so it becomes a core memory.
Check off a list on the mirror of steps with a dry-erase marker.
School Practice Ideas:
Just like with family, encourage the use of a napkin when eating. If this isn’t where you thought we’d start, you’re right, but a common thing seen in training programs is food on the mouth or clothes after lunch or a snack break. A wonderful worker can enter work with the help of family members looking shiny and ready and end it all in a 15-minute break.
Complete a daily checklist for hygiene during transition years and have the student track and graph each week so they can see their areas of improvement.
Discuss foods that are more messy or messy for that individual that may be best to just eat at home.
Use school to help learn foods that may be best eaten at home for individuals.
Discuss “headphone hair.” Some hair styles give “headphone hair” after an individual uses them. Help them recognize this, have them carry a brush or comb, and get in the habit of fixing their hair after using headphones.
Deanna Heuring, Ed. S. owns Graceful Transition, LLC. Helping others navigate through areas of employment, college, and elder transition. Deanna has been an educator for over 15 years, focusing on individuals with disabilities. She currently teaches in a job skills training program based in the St. Louis community. With a long focus on the "transition" period of education, she set out to provide assistance to families at all stages of life. Transition Education in Missouri, and most states is considered the time period between the ages of 16-21. It refers to planning for life after graduation from K-12 education. Deanna believes families can prepare for "transition" long before age 16, which is the basis of the creation of Life Transition Services for Individuals with Disabilities.
https://sites.google.com/view/graceful-transitions-llc/home?authuser=0
